


There is being oblivious...

by Nina36



Category: Doctor Who RPF
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-22
Updated: 2013-01-22
Packaged: 2017-11-26 12:14:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/650414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nina36/pseuds/Nina36
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There was being oblivious, being clueless…and then there was them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	There is being oblivious...

There was being oblivious, being clueless…and then there was them.  
He looked at them, observed them, day in and day out…they were cute, in a ‘oh for God’s sake, get a room already!’ way.  
Karen and Matt were his co-stars, his friends, his family away from home; they were talented, had embraced the challenge of playing the doctor and his companion with a smile on their faces, their hipster way of living and their matt’n’kazness that had him on the verge of banging his head to the nearest wall more often than not.  
And the worst of it was? They did not have a clue! Because he knew them, they were good actors, but they weren’t that good. The betting pool on set -one he might have or might have not started himself - had reached epic proportions…the lucky winner would be some happy sod.  
Because everyone knew it was just inevitable…ok, maybe he had to reformulate that: it was inevitable that everyone who spent more than five minutes in the same room with those two got a clue right away…everyone, except Matt and Karen.  
His two costars? They were friends, mates, buddies, pals, totally platonic friends. Yes, and that bridge in London? It had been in his family for ages, he could sell it for a good price.  
Seriously!  
Because platonic friends invaded each other’s personal spaces all the time, right?  
Because platonic friends had a habit of talking while watching each other’s lips.  
Because platonic friends couldn’t keep their traps shut about each other not even if their lives depended on it…and acted like kids in the school yard.  
He was watching them even now, goofing around on set, shamelessly flirting – because that’s how grownups were used to calling what his two idiot co stars did all the bloody time – Karen had just said something, Matt was laughing…while staring at her.  
Because, ladies and gentlemen, if there were Olympics about staring at costars Matt Smith would probably get a gold metal .  
Yes, Matt, she’s Karen Gillan, your costar, you should be used to her. No?  
Karen nudged Matt, tilting her head on a side and smiled looking at him, and Matt’s smile grew even wider.  
Apparently not.  
Karen took a step closer to Matt – lo and behold how the laws of physics bowed to them and allowed them not to trip into each other – and Matt did that thing with his head, while he stifled a sigh and turned to his left, toward a crew member who subtly rolled his eyes.  
If they did that kind of idiot things just for fans’ benefits it wouldn’t be so comical. But no…they were like that all the damn time. 

It was like living in a rom-com sometimes, they were so cliché about the whole thing that Arthur sometimes wished, he really did, that they were just pretending to be dense while actually shagging like bunnies behind closed doors – and someone would have to pay for the therapy he was bound to attend, thanks to those mental images and the general idiocy on set-  
It was like living in a rom-com and he hated feeling like the poor bloke, the friend of the two idiots in love, who bent backwards to get them together without getting any in return, except, maybe, some random girl he met in the last scene of the movie, with whom he might have mind blowing sex but who, Arthur had always suspected, would turn into a psycho bitch the day after.  
Oh, bloody, sodding, hell…he was going crazy!  
“They’re cute…” Alex said, sitting next to him.  
Arthur turned his head on her side, “If you’re into diabetes” he commented.  
Alex laughed, throwing her head back, having her on set was always a pleasure, problem was she wasn’t always on set. She had no idea, none whatsoever about what he, poor Arthur Darvill, had to witness and endure every single day.  
He was there when Matt and Karen thought the world was made of cotton sugar and rainbow and working under the rain or a freezing cold wind was the coolest idea ever…  
He was there when they were moody, because for some reason their bubble had been infected with – gasp!- real life and they sulked and moped until one of them – usually Matt, because yes he really, really had no shame –did something so …so…matt’n’kaz that she forgave him, smiled her brightest smile and they were there, dancing around that line that everybody but them saw.  
He was there when they both, oh the universe and its ironies, became single again - because no one saw that coming- and had witnessed, firsthand how they’d been there for each other, as friends, without having one single clue.  
He needed a wall or a desk, it was time to bang his head against it…  
“Oh, sweetheart…I think I know what to do” Alex said.  
Arthur smiled, relaxing against his chair, in the meantime, Matt and Karen were doing something incredibly funny…maybe they had both tripped on something, and were laughing, because their world was pink and glittery…  
Really, he was becoming bitter.  
“You do?” Arthur asked.  
“Oh…” Alex said looking for a moment toward Matt and Karen, “I think I do…” she looked at him with a bright smile and said, “Just listen to me sweetheart…and trust me”  
“Okay” Arthur said raising a finger, “first of all? Don’t ‘sweetheart’ me...second of all…will it work?”

Alex shrugged, “Like a charm…now listen to me, Darvill…”  
~  
Arthur was worried. Of course no one would even notice he was worried in that moment, not with the music and the alcohol floating around in Alex’s rented flat, but he was worried.  
On one hand, Alex’s plan in its simplicity was genius: make those two idiots get finally a clue – and put the rest of the world out of their misery – by making one of them insanely jealous…on the other hand there were some problems: number one, he had seen both Matt and Karen being jealous, it had happened when Matt’s girlfriend or Karen’s boyfriend had been on set, and they had gone all out for a beer, and Arthur had seen the difference in his costars, how not being able to be matt’n’kaz had been difficult for them, how Matt had pursed his lips, and unconsciously held his glass tighter when Karen’s boyfriend had kissed her, or how Karen’s eyebrow had done that weird dance they did when she was pissed off, she wanted to say something about it but was too polite to talk, when Matt’s girlfriend decided to explore Matt’s tonsils in front of everyone.  
In the end, though, boyfriend and girlfriend had thrown up the towel, maybe thinking that it was like trying to fight gravity…you could try, you were welcome to it…but what was the point? Eventually gravity would do his thing…  
The other problem he saw with Alex’s plan was that they were all friends there, friends having drinks on a Friday night…and he didn’t see any of them trying to make one of the stars of their show jealous. – there was also the little detail that he was the only one aware of Alex’s plan…which lead to the fact that, seriously, he and Karen? Seriously? Just..no!  
The other concern he had…was…what would happen if Alex’s plan backfired and Matt and Karen ended up fighting? Or worse, getting together with the person chosen to make them wake up and smell the coffee? He honestly didn’t know what could be possibly worse.  
He started when he felt Alex’s hand on his shoulders and turned to look at her.  
“I could hear you thinking from over there!” She said gesturing the other side of the room, “Just relax! Look at them..” she whispered against his ear  
And there they were, Matt and Karen, in the room, Karen was sitting on a couch, Matt was on the floor, sitting Indian style, they were talking , Matt was gesturing wildly with his hands, Karen was laughing, while holding both their glasses…they were totally, completely lost in their bubble, totally unaware of the other people in the room.  
“We could just take them and shove them in a closet” Arthur suggested.  
Alex sighed, “Darling, they have no clue…”  
Arthur nodded in agreement, “None whatsoever…but about your idea…who…”

Alex took a sip from her glass and said, “Let me handle this…”  
Arthur blinked. Alex? Alex Kingstone?  
“What…are you thinking?” Arthur asked. He didn’t tell her she was not River Song, and Matt could flirt like a pro, but in the end, he’d always go back looking at Karen as if she had hung the moon even if, and he was sure about it, he’d be surprised, shocked even, if someone told him that he was in love with his costar.  
And why, why on Earth couldn’t he just enjoy the party, get drunk and possibly laid like any other normal human being?  
Alex laughed, “Oh, sweetie..” She took off her jacket, revealing a tight top underneath it that showed definitely more cleavage than the outfits they usually saw her wearing…and wow, she was hot!  
“Why are you doing this?” Arthur asked, holding Alex’s jacket.  
Alex blinked at him but didn’t answer, and started walking toward Matt and Karen, swaying her hips, a purpose in every step as clear as day.  
Oh, bloody…sodding…hell

***  
Arthur wished he had a camera, he really did. He had missed a few focal points while thinking about Alex’s plan. Yes, he had seen both Matt and Karen being jealous, but they had been jealous of people who had been already there, before they met. Official boyfriend and girlfriend – who very wisely decided to leave those two idiots to their bubble because hitting brickwalls wasn’t funny in real life.  
The second thing he had completely missed, and boy…he had missed it, was Alex Kingstone. That woman was definitely hot – and very married and very much not interested in Matt, although she was giving a hell of a convincing performance of the contrary - , she was smart and she was getting a real kick out of ruffling all of Karen’s feathers.  
Third, he had really underestimated the level of possessiveness a woman in love could achieve.  
Karen Gillan was pissed off, she was jealous and she was hanging on a very thin thread at the moment, whereas Matt was being totally oblivious and was dancing with Alex. Well…dance was a way to describe what they were doing. Another would be that they were basically dry humping each other.  
Seriously, he needed a camera …because Karen’s face was priceless.  
And soon he’d have to intervene, because he had the distinct feeling that Karen Gillan was that close to go and scratch Alex’s eyes out…and if asked it would not because she was head over heels in love with her costar. Of course! It’d be because of millions of reasons that surely made a lot of sense in the world of Karen Gillan…but not as much in real world.  
All his thoughts, mental images of a catfight between Karen and Alex went and flew out of the window when Karen gathered her coat and purse, and purposely brushed past Matt and Alex thus announcing that she was leaving.  
He even heard a curt and bitter, “Have fun, Smith!”  
Arthur sighed, he didn’t know whether to bang his head against the wall of his left, headslap Matthew, got drunk or just go and talk to the blondie that had been giving him wide smiles for about ten minutes.  
He decided he would all of the above, he rocked at multitasking.  
***  
Karen was fuming. She didn’t think she had ever felt so angry in her life and the things was? She had no idea why! She had had fun for most of the evening, with friends, his castmates and Matt had been telling her about that encounter he had had with a fan at the grocery store, and his impression of the star struck kid had been hilarious and – wonders of wonders – he had even had the presence of mind to hand her his glass of wine, because Matt was a klutz, and the chances of the red wine ending up on her pristine blouse as he gestured wildly, holding a glass were usually high…but if he already had alcohol in his system? They were in the triple digits. 

Things had been fun and she had started to relax…that had been until Alex had approached them, wearing a too tight dress – really, all the world now knew Alex had boobs, especially Matt- and she had purred into Matt’s ear , asking him to dance with her.  
Just like that! She had been all, “Hi, I used to be married to Ralph Fiennes and worked with George Clooney, and I’m here to eat you alive!”  
Not that she had said those words aloud, but her intent had been pretty blatant! And she was furious and she didn’t understand why!  
Hi Karen, I’m the green eyed monster…fancy to finally meet you  
She stopped while trying to putting on her coat, which for some reason didn’t want to cooperate. Damn, bloody piece of fabric!  
And she wasn’t jealous! Poor Matt had looked at Alex puzzled, he had weakly gestured toward her and Alex had ignored her, taken him by the hand, managed not to make him trip and had started swaying her hips and …  
Bloody stupid coat! She snorted, deciding not to wear that blasted thing after all…  
She was not jealous…that was ridiculous! Matt and she were mates, she loved him to pieces, but not like that

Yes you do and you suck at being subtle  
Karen shivered. First of all…why was she hearing voices? Second of all: huh? Thid: Matt?  
She was in love with Matt? Since when?  
End of the first week of shooting, he walked you to your flat, didn’t leave until you were safe into it and you waved each other good bye from your window.  
Karen shook her head…no, that just wasn’t possible! Matt was her best friend! He was stupid Matt, her partner in crime on set, they talked and they hung out, unless Alex decided to take him away and seduce him in front of her …and wait a bloody minute!  
“Oh…” It was the only thing that came out from Karen’s mouth, when outside Alex’s flat, shivering for the cold and the anger she realized two things: she was in love with her co-star and her co-star was now dancing with a colleague, and last she had seen their groins where getting acquainted and Alex had seemed hellbent into shagging Matt right the fuck now.  
“Oh…” She repeated. Her mind was stuck on a loop…she was in love with Matt…and it did make sense if she thought about it, it was like something beautiful, just waiting to be found out and if she wasn’t so pissed off and jealous and feeling very dense, she’d be even making a little dance of joy…because being in love with Matt…was amazing! Because it was Matt…and her, and now it made sense why she woke up with a smile on her face even when she had had to learn a million pages of dialogue or had a cold, or she missed her family.  
It made sense why joking with Matt felt like flirting, except that it was safe, because it was Matt and he would never, ever hurt her. But he just had…  
What she was supposed to do now?  
I’d start with breathing…hyperventilation is not going to help any.  
Just what the hell had she drunk that night? – and why the voice in her head was making more sense than it had any right to? And why did it sound like Meryl Streep in “The Devil Wears Prada”?  
Breathe and wear that bloody coat and then go and take back your man.  
The first thing was easy, more or less, she took a deep breath, finding out that she had been indeed on the verge of hyperventilating. With fresh air in her lungs, her head cleared enough she was able to put on her coat, yet she kept shivering.  
Meanwhile in Alex’s flat she might have shagged him in the bathroom or the kitchen floor, moving would be a good idea. Now!  
She couldn’t move. Miranda, in her head, could say whatever she wanted, but what if Matt wanted to be shagged by Alex? Just because she had realized she was in love with him, it didn’t mean Matt loved her back.  
Huh…weird, the voice in her head was shutting up, which was it good thing, because hearing voices was a sign of madness…but it was also a bit upsetting, because if Miranda, the friendly voice in her head, was shutting up it meant it was true: Matt didn’t love her back.  
You. Are. Stupid.  
She was back…and first thing on Monday she would seek therapy, she decided.  
Dense and blind, my Lord, Karen…  
She was about to give Miranda a piece of her mind – and really, naming the voices in her head was one thing, but having arguments with them? How drunk she was? – when she heard footsteps behind her, a whispered cuss when the person behind her tripped on something and then a panted, “Kaz…where are you going?”  
It was Matt. Of course it was Matt…she would recognize his steps and the ability to trip on thin air everywhere, and look, she thought as turned to look at him…he was beautiful, had he always been so beautiful? And he didn’t have his coat on, he looked worried …and just what the hell was he doing there anyway?  
She blushed, apparently there had been a malfunctioning in her filter brain to mouth, because she had said the last part of her thoughts aloud.  
“I was worried about you, you left in such a hurry” Matt said and had his voice always been so full of concern and fondness or she was noticing it just now?  
I won’t even dignify this with an answer.  
“I’m surprised you noticed I was leaving!” Karen said, and really, she tried to be civil and under normal circumstances she could be smooth and not obvious. Under any other circumstance, apparently.  
Matt frowned, genuinely puzzled by her words, “Why wouldn’t I?” he asked.  
Her pride waved her away as she spat, “Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you were so engaged in dry humping Alex?”  
The look on Matt’s face was comical, in his disbelief, but Karen didn’t pay attention to it, she sort of saw red when Matt said, “I beg your pardon?”  
“Oh, Matt…” Karen purred in her best Alex’s impression, swaying her hips toward him, invading his space, and whispering against his lips, “Can’t you feel the music?” she turned, giving her back to Matt, replaying the scene that had set her off: Alex brushing her backside against Matt, her eyes fixed on him, a smile on her lips.  
Except that she couldn’t do that kind of thing…not with Matt!  
She started when she felt Matt’s hands on her hips, stilling her, and her heart made a weird dance in her chest, and come to think of it, it wasn’t the first time either…how many times Matt’s touch had sped up her heartbeat? God, she really was dense!  
“We were just goofing around and why…” Matt trailed, she was still giving her back at him, she could feel his chest rising and falling, and she wanted to look at him, more than she had ever wanted anything in her life - well, maybe that was a hyperbole, she wanted to kiss Matt more – but she was petrified.  
“Are you jealous?” Matt asked. And he was serious, there wasn’t any teasing in his voice, he was asking a real question, to which she would have to give a honest answer.  
“he’s going to figure it out. He will hug you and tell you that he will always be you friend, that he is sorry, but he just doesn’t see you that way”  
“he will tell that it’s none of your business and that you should stop being a child”  
“he will tell you that you suck, because you just spoiled his chance with Alex out of jealousy and by the way? You need to get over your crush”  
She turned, feeling on the verge of tears and said, tilting her head down, “Maybe”  
“Maybe?” Matt asked. There was a hint of amusement now in his voice, but mostly wonder…and when she tilted her head up to look at him, she almost burst out laughing, Matt looked like he had just had the shock of his life and he had just found himself in a candy store. He looked adorable….and his hands were still on her hips, and Karen couldn’t tear her eyes away from his.  
“Definitely” She whispered.  
Matt nodded, and she saw him trying to form words, while smiling and still keeping her close to him and Karen couldn’t help it, she didn’t even care whether he would tell her off, later: she brushed his lips with hers, once, twice.  
And then the incredible happened: Matt kissed her back.  
And it was incredible…because it was Matt…and he was her best friend, her partner in crime on set, the one who teased mercilessly and told her how good she had been in a scene, when she felt unsure, and he was kissing her as if he was thirsty, as if she was oxygen and he needed it, needed her…and Karen felt exactly the same.  
They were kissing in public, for the first time, and it was crazy, and beautiful and new and just so right.  
And part of her thought that they would need to talk, later, maybe even find someplace warmer where to keep kissing, er…she meant talking, about feelings and other things that usually got talked about… but that part was quickly and efficiently shut up by Miranda, her friendly inner voice - which, she decided, rocked after all – that said,  
Oh, for goodness sake, will you just keep kissing him?  
And just a few meters away, behind them, wrapped in their coats, Alex Kingstone and Arthur Darvill silently high fived each other.


End file.
